A ball of intense heat appeared in the troll’s face, causing it to reel, as Alain added his own powers to the fight.
The troll shook its head, its skin smoking, then stubbornly started forward again.
Mari stood her ground and kept shooting until the troll stopped less than three lances away, wavering, its crude face now a ruined mass. “Cease fire!” Mari yelled.
The sudden silence felt unreal. It was broken by an inarticulate grunt from the troll, which tried to move one broad foot forward but instead fell to lie unmoving.
“Is it dead?” Mari asked Alain in a low voice.
“It was never alive—" he began.
“I know!”
Alain walked forward until he was next to the troll, gazing down at it. “It has ceased,” he said.
Mari saw horses coming toward them through the smoke, Tiae and Confederation cavalry mixed together. Major Sten, in the lead, saluted as his horse shied away from the remains of the dragon and the troll. “Two Dark Mages. We feared they would strike at us with their spells but they only used knives. We killed both.”
“They were surprised by how quickly their spell creatures were destroyed,” Alain said, “and having put so much strength into creating the creatures could not recover in time to save themselves.”
A couple of men and one woman wearing the clothes of commons were brought forward at lance point. “Prisoners,” Major Sten said.
Mari looked them over, spotting a familiar face. “That big man. Alain, he’s one of the Dark Mechanics from Dorcastle.”
The man glared at Mari and spat, oblivious to the tears running down his face. “My friends are dead. Are you happy?”
“No,” Mari said. “They’re dead because they wanted to kill me. I regret every death, but I’m getting tired of people who leave me no choice and then want me to feel guilty for what they did. Instead of attacking me, why didn’t you help us overthrow the Great Guilds? You could have practiced the Mechanic arts in the open instead of hiding them from the Mechanics Guild.”
“We wanted to make a lot of money, not practice arts, you blasted fool!” the man raged.
“Then blame your own greed, not me. What happened to the scouts?” Mari asked Sten.
“Killed,” Sten said, his face an angry mask. “As your Mage guessed, the Dark Mages must have slain them. We found the bodies. Both died without drawing a weapon. They never had a chance.”
The Confederation militia officer was just as mad as Sten. “I’ll assign some of my people to bring the prisoners along behind us. We’ll walk them to Dorcastle to help labor in defense of the city.”
“Maybe we can use them as human shields when the Imperials attack,” someone growled.
“No,” Mari said. She did not think she had put a lot of force into the word, but everyone immediately stopped to listen. “The Great Guilds made themselves the only law, and the world has suffered for it. Use these prisoners as your laws demand, and no worse.”
Major Sten nodded, his expression still grim. “The daughter has spoken.”
Mari coughed as smoke swirled around her. “Let’s get out of here.” She turned away from the big man from Dorcastle, somehow knowing that she would never see him again. Mounting up as a soldier brought her mare, Mari rode past the destroyed spell creatures and dead ambushers, her horse shying away from the bodies. She kept telling herself that the tears in her eyes were only from the smoke.
Alain, riding beside her again, reached over to rest one hand on hers. “Are you all right?”
Mari grimaced. “The daughter feels horrible.”
“How does Mari feel?”
“Like she has since the day she learned about the daughter thing, wishing that it was someone else’s job, but knowing that it’s hers.” Mari blinked as they cleared the cut and the smoke, using one hand to rub away the moisture in her eyes. Up ahead in the distance she could see a low bank of smog that marked the location of Danalee, another step closer to Dorcastle.
* * * *
They were still a short distance from the city, the slanting rays of the afternoon sun casting their shadows to their right as they trudged along, when one of the new scouts came riding back. “There’s someone waiting up ahead. A Mechanic.”
Mari massaged her tired eyes, then gazed ahead. “Is he wearing one of my armbands?” she asked, indicating the many-pointed golden star on a blue field on her own and Alain’s forearms.
“No, Lady. There is an escort of militia from Danalee watching him. They say he came out of the city early this morning and has been waiting in that place along the road all day. He appears to be unarmed,” the scout added.
“Why does he have a militia escort from Danalee?” Major Sten asked.
“They say orders have gone out, sir, to make sure no Mechanics are harmed unless the Mechanic is threatening someone. They’re protecting him from anyone who might attack him. It’s because of the peace of the daughter.”
Major Sten and Major Danel turned questioning looks at Mari, who needed a moment to realize what “the peace of the daughter” meant. “Are you talking about me telling people that they are going to need Mechanics when the new day comes?” Mari asked. “Yes, I have been sending word around that making forbidden technology available to everyone won’t do any good if the people who understand how to make and use that technology have been driven off or killed. Many Mechanics haven’t joined me, but that doesn’t mean they can’t help a lot once victory has been won.”
“Perhaps that’s what this Mechanic wants to talk about,” Major Sten suggested.
“Let’s find out,” Mari said. “Alain, come with me. The rest of you stop as soon as this Mechanic comes into sight.”
Alain kept his eyes on the Mechanic as he came into view, but sensed no warnings of danger to Mari.
The Mechanic had been sitting alongside the main road where a small secondary road joined it, but stood up when he saw Mari riding toward him. He walked into the center of the road and stood still, his arms spread out and his empty hands clearly visible.
Well off to the side, twelve Confederation foot militia watched, their short swords in their scabbards. Smiles appeared when they saw Mari’s banner flying above the approaching column, and a buzz of excited conversation began among them.
Mari rode within a few lance lengths of the Mechanic before dismounting. Alain waited until she was on her feet and watching the Mechanic before he also dismounted.
The Mechanic, an older man with the hands of someone who had used them in labor for many years, nodded to Mari. “I’m Master Mechanic Lo.”
Mari nodded in reply. “I guess you know who I am. Lo of Danalee? Mechanic Alli has told me about you.”
“Is that so?”
“Tough. Fair. Knows his job. That’s what she said.”
“Hmmph.” Despite Lo’s dismissive snort, Mari could see that he was pleased by the characterization. “How’s Alli?”
“Doing great,” Mari said. “Building the things she’s dreamed of making.”
“Like that?” Lo nodded toward the scabbard at Mari’s saddle.
Mari eyed Lo appraisingly, then turned enough to draw out her rifle. She pulled out the magazine, made sure the chamber was empty, then handed the weapon to Lo. “You were a supervisor in one of the Guild’s weapons workshops when Alli worked for you. What do you think?”
Lo took it, turning the rifle in his hands and examining the weapon carefully. “Not bad. Decent work. Some signs of haste in the construction of the parts. Semi-automatic? This is way ahead of Guild rifles.”
“Commons made some of the parts and helped assemble the weapon,” Mari said.
Lo paused, looking uncomfortable. “So what do the Mechanics do?”
“Design the weapons, make modifications, oversee the process.”
“They’re still in charge?”
“When it comes to making things, yes,” Mari said. “It’s what we’re good at. Outside the workshops, the commons rule themselves.”<
br />
Lo raised one skeptical eyebrow. “From what we’ve heard, you rule the commons.”
“No,” Mari said. “I command my army, and help decide priorities for construction and that only for as long as it takes to overthrow the Great Guilds.”
“A year ago I would have said only a fool would speak of overthrowing the Mechanics Guild,” Lo said. He looked at the rifle again. “But if you’re making these…how many?”
“That’s one of the latest,” Mari said. “Check the serial number.”
Lo squinted to read, both eyebrows rising this time. “How do you make enough ammunition?”
“Mass production.”
“Blazes, girl, did you ever meet a rule you didn’t want to break?”
Mari shook her head. “Safety rules are one thing I never break, but many of the other rules of the Mechanics Guild are all about the Senior Mechanics staying in control of everything and everybody.”
This time Lo paused for a while before speaking again. “I’m here for two reasons. One is because I worry about Alli. She’s a gifted Mechanic. I wasn’t happy when I heard she had gone rogue with you, because I didn’t want the Guild to lose her potential and I didn’t want her to be hurt.”
“The Guild saw her potential as a threat,” Mari said.
“I won’t argue that,” Lo said. “I heard from someone in a position to know that Alli had been marked for arrest before she threw in with you. You likely saved her from being sent to the Guild’s prison in Longfalls, for which I am grateful. But…”
“But?” Mari prodded.
“The other reason I wanted to see you in person is that…word came down to us that you were thought to be on your way to Dorcastle. You’ve probably already heard that the Senior Mechanics have ordered everyone to fort up inside their Guild Halls.”
“I hadn’t heard, but I expected it,” Mari said. “Are you supposed to stay safe inside the Guild Halls until the Imperials come marching into town?”
“Yeah.” Lo grimaced. “I spent a few years inside the Empire. I admit to not being thrilled at the idea of them running the commons here. But that’s not why I snuck out. Even though it seems impossible that you’ll survive, let alone win.” He looked at the rifle he held again, then passed it back to Mari. “You’ve surprised a lot of people.”
“You are worried, Sir Master Mechanic,” Alain said.
Lo gave Alain a glance. “First time a Mage ever talked to me, and the first time I ever heard of one being polite to anybody. I won’t try lying to you…Sir Mage. Of course I’m worried. I have a wife, and two sons, and a daughter. One of those sons recently married. The commons have been getting more dangerous. That was happening before you made a name for yourself, Mari, so unlike some I don’t blame you for it. I think you’re riding that tiger. But I don’t want that tiger devouring my family.”
“It won’t,” Mari said. “Have you seen the pamphlets that have been sent among the commons?”
“The Senior Mechanics have forbidden anyone to read them, so of course we have all read them.” Lo studied Mari again. “The daughter tells all commons not to strike at Mechanics, not to retaliate, not to take revenge. ‘The world needs Mechanics,’ ” he quoted. “I needed to look at you and see if you really meant that.”
“I do,” Mari said. “I’ve got the banned technology that the Guild has kept from everyone, and everyone is going to have access to it. But they won’t be able to use that technology unless they have Mechanics who can understand it and build it. I know how much the commons hate their overlords. But I can convince them that most Mechanics are willing to just use their skills, not be rulers, and that we are going to need Mechanics. Then their own self-interest will ensure your family stays safe. I know that the leaders of the Bakre Confederation understand that.”
“Will the commons really listen to you?”
Mari paused this time, knowing her discomfort was showing. “They wouldn’t listen to Master Mechanic Mari. But they do listen to the daughter of Jules.”
Lo gazed down at the road for a while, finally raising his eyes back to Mari. “A Mechanic is always supposed to make best use of the tools available. The daughter story is disdained by the Senior Mechanics, but anyone who listens to the commons knows how much it means to them. You know what’s going to hit Dorcastle?”
“Yes,” Mari said.
“But you’re going anyway?”
“They need me.”
Master Mechanic Lo nodded, his eyes judging her. “If you somehow win, many of your former Guild mates are going to need you. Mechanics like me and my family. I don’t mind the prospect of working for myself instead of the Guild. I do mind the thought of being enslaved.”
Mari shook her head. “I swear to you that I will not let that happen. If…I’m not around, and the Confederation treats you poorly, head south. Queen Sien of Tiae will take in you and your family and ensure you are treated fairly. She knows how important you can be to the future of the reborn kingdom.”
“I wish I didn’t have to depend on your word alone for that,” Lo said. “No offense.”
Mari smiled thinly. “Compared to some of the things the Senior Mechanics have said about me, that’s nothing. You don’t have to take my word for it. Master Mechanic Lukas and Professor S’san are in Tiae. So is Alli, who I know respects you. Send word to them. They’ll tell you.”
“I’ll do that.”
“Can you get back to the Guild Hall in Danalee safely?”
Lo paused, looking at Mari again. “Yes. These commons seem unusually worried about my welfare.”
“Good.” She raised her voice. “I want you to get back safely to your Guild Hall.” Mari could see the Danalee militia had heard. “Go in peace, Master Mechanic.”
“Thank you,” Lo said. “I can’t wish you luck, but you have my respect. Tell Alli not to get her butt shot off.” He turned and walked steadily down the side road.
Mari hastened to where the Danalee militia were about to follow Lo.
“Make sure he gets back,” Mari said to them, worried about Lo being alone in a country teeming with commons who hated their Mechanic overlords. “You will need Mechanics like him when the Great Guilds are overthrown. And keep yourselves safe, too. Don’t,” she added hastily as the militia members began to kneel.
“We have all heard of the peace of the daughter. He is a friend of yours?” one of the militia asked.
Mari hesitated, not certain whether to grant Lo that status but remembering Alli’s stories about him. “Yes,” she finally said. “And once this all over, and he is free of the iron grip of the Mechanics Guild, he can do a lot for Danalee. As a fellow citizen, not as an overlord.”
“He’s a Mechanic,” one woman commented in acidic tones.
“So am I,” Mari said. “Don’t judge him by the way he looks. Judge him by what he does. Judge him by what he can do for all of you and your city once the Great Guilds have been overthrown.”
She couldn’t tell if she had convinced them, but the militia soldiers all saluted before hurrying off in the wake of Master Mechanic Lo.
“It is well that you did not have to attempt to convince them to trust in a Mage,” Alain remarked.
She turned to see that Alain had followed her once the militia had left. Had there been a trace of sadness in his voice? “I’m sorry. Everybody is so happy to see me. I forget how they react to the sight of other Mechanics, and to Mages.”
“You have made changes in Tiae,” Alain said. “Others see me differently there.”
“You miss it, don’t you?”
“Yes. But I could not stay in Tiae without you.”
She couldn’t think of anything to say to that, so Mari just smiled at him. They walked back to the main road and rejoined the rest of the column.
The cavalry walked with their horses again until much closer to the city, then everyone remounted for the entry into town. As they had drawn closer to Danalee, the road passing outlying homes and businesses like stables,
farms, and inns, Mari had noticed Alain becoming more tense. But he said nothing. “What’s the matter?” she finally asked.
Alain shook his head slightly. “I do not know.”
“Foresight?”
“No. At least, not in a form I have ever experienced it. Something feels wrong. I cannot explain it any more clearly than that.”
Mari looked ahead, where growing crowds were lining the streets in anticipation of her arrival. “Wrong dangerous?”
“I do not know.”
“Does it feel like Mechanic stuff?”
Alain paused. “It does not feel like anything.” He glanced at Mari. “That is it. Not how it feels, but what I do not feel. Danalee has a large Mage Guild Hall. I should be catching traces of the minor spells being used by Mages and acolytes. I should be picking up signs of their presence. But I feel nothing. It is silent.”
That sounded bad. “All of the Mages and acolytes in Danalee are completely hiding themselves from you?”
Alain shook his head again, distress becoming apparent to Mari. “No. Acolytes could not hide their presence, and the newer Mages should not have the skill to be impossible for me to spot. But there is no sense of any of them. Something is very wrong.”
Chapter Three
The cheering crowds up ahead contrasted oddly with Alain’s sudden sense of alarm. Mari had told him that she could tell when a city was alive by the presence of a low cloud of dust and smoke above it, a cloud created by the presence and the activities of the people in that city. Dead cities, like Marandur, had only clear, empty skies above them.
This was like that in Mage terms. A city such as Danalee would normally have many Mages and dozens of acolytes moving about and working spells, many so low-level and faint that Alain would be barely aware of them. Only nearby Mages and spells would normally force themselves into his awareness. But that background hum of Mages and their works was silent here, as silent as in the ruins of Marandur.